Surprise
by derangedperson
Summary: A quick tale of a family bond. Takes place after the events in Where There Is Hate.


This fic is inspired by a piece of artwork called "The Best Siblings" by CherryViolets dot deviantart dot com. Gravity Falls belongs to Alex Hirsch and Disney.

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><p>"Alright, folks! The Mystery Shack is closed! Thank you for your patronage, and if you have any items to purchase, too late! You should've checked out when we were open! Thanks for coming, and tell your friends!"<p>

The crowd filed out of the gift shop as Stan Pines shook his head in amazement. It had been three weeks since the Shack crew had stared down Khadra, god of hate, and beaten him. As it was wont to do, word of mouth traveled fast, and literally the next day, Stan opened the door to see a crowd of people lined up outside-it must have been twenty or thirty people, the kind of business he'd see in a week, if he was lucky. But thanks to the newfound fame they were experiencing, crowds that size had become the norm, the Shack's profits had increased tenfold, and no one was happier about it than Stan.

He and Wendy began to take down the cash register for the night, with Soos exclaiming, "What a day, Mr. Pines! All those people coming to see this place; it's incredible!"

"You know what else is incredible," Stan asked as he counted the money in the drawer. "All this scratch! There's gotta be at least six, seven hundred dollars' worth of cash here!" He pulled out the twenties and began to thumb through them, saying, "Looks like the Godbox did the trick!"

"I'll say," Wendy said. "Especially the sigil stuff-we can't keep it on the shelves!"

"I'm makin' money hand over fist 'cause of that thing! Best idea we've ever had!"

Soos, ever the realist, said, "Make sure you hang onto that money, Mr. Pines. There's no telling when our fifteen minutes is gonna be up."

Stan's smile went from a full-toothed beam to a thin slit that skirted a frown as Soos spoke. He sighed and stopped counting, writing down the total so he could pick up where he left off. "I have every intention to, Soos. Those two kids mean the world to me, and after what happened, I wanna make sure they're taken care of. When he had Mabel in that deathgrip..." His voice cracked as he felt tears welling up in his eyes and lowered his head, gulping them back. Wendy put her hand on Stan's shoulder and said, "It's okay, Mr. Pines."

"I know, I know." Stan wiped his eyes and continued. "When he had Mabel in that deathgrip, I knew that I had to do something for 'em if we got out of that mess alive. I know things can't last forever. That's why I'm putting half the profits the Shack makes from this wave we've had into a trust fund."

Wendy extended her arm over Stan's shoulders and gave him a warm smile, with the old man returning it and concluding, "And with all that interest building up over time, I'll have done my part for 'em. Besides, I can use it as a tax write-off!"

"That's real generous of you, dude," Soos said with a smile.

"Just don't go telling anyone! I don't wanna ruin my reputation!"

"Gotcha." The handyman began to sweep the floors of the Shack as Dipper and Mabel walked in, the twins' demeanor just as upbeat as their grunkle's. Dipper put his backpack on the counter while Mabel ran upstairs to the attic, asking, "So how was business today, guys?"

"Incredible," Stan answered. "There's a whole new pack of rubes coming to see the lid every day, and there's $723.60 here to prove it!"

"Money!" Mabel sang from upstairs. "It's a gas!"

"Darn straight it is, kid! What'd you guys do today?"

Mabel bounded downstairs and explained, "Well, Dipper ran into a bunch of tourists-they were like, 'Hey, you're that kid!' and he was like 'Yeah' and they were like 'Can we take a picture?' and he was like 'Okay' and they were like-"

Dipper chuckled and said, "What my sister's trying to say is, on my way to the library, a group of tourists wanted to take a picture with me."

"And?"

"I did, and one of them gave me this." Dipper took off his hat and pointed to a small cluster of flowers in his hair. "How could I say no to a sweet old lady?"

"Like this: No," Stan cracked. "It's that easy, kid."

Dipper chuckled at his grunkle's joke and yielded the floor to Mabel, who said, "As for me, the supplies I ordered from the craft store came in today, and I can finally finish Dipper's present! I'm so excited!"

"So, Dipper, what do you think it is?" Wendy asked.

"Knowing Mabel, it could be anything."

"And that's why I'm so excited!" Mabel started back up the stairs, saying, "Sorry, broheim, but I don't want you peeking at it before it's finished! I'll give you a holler when it's done!"

"I'll be waiting!"

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><p>And wait he did. Dusk crept over the Oregon countryside as Dipper and Stan watched the newest episode of <em>Baby Fights<em> together. With Wendy back home for the night and Soos in town with Melody, they had the Shack all to themselves as they cheered on the epic battle onscreen.

"No, Higgins! Don't just take that lying down!" Stan yelled at a baby who was idly letting the other bop him with a stuffed animal.

"C'mon, Davis! Bop him till he cracks!" Dipper exclaimed.

"You got this, Higgins! Wear him down and find an opening!" On-screen, Higgins did just that as he stood on his wobbly legs and fell on top of Davis. "YES! TAKEDOWN!"

The ref counted 1...2...3 and Stan pumped his fists in excitement. "Ah, the sweet, sweet nectar of victory! I love it!"

"No fair! How was Davis supposed to know that was gonna happen?"

"That's the beauty of this, kid! You _never_ know!"

In the middle of their argument, Dipper and Stan heard footsteps descending from the attic. Dipper knew that could only mean one thing, and it was confirmed when Mabel danced into the living room singing, "Done, done, done, done, done, done-I am done!"

"I don't know, kid, but I think your sister's tryin' to tell you something," Stan cracked.

"I got it, Grunkle Stan," Dipper said. "I'll be right back." He had barely risen from the floor when Mabel grabbed his hand and yanked him towards the stairs, with Dipper nearly falling twice on the way up to the attic.

"Sorry about that, bro, but I just can't wait for you to see this!" Mabel reached into her closet as he asked, "Okay, Mabel, what's the surprise?"

"Close your eyes, silly! Otherwise it won't be one!" Dipper rolled his eyes and did as he was told, his sister looking back to make sure he wasn't peeking. "Okay, Dippingsauce, raise your arms over your head."

In the back of his mind, Dipper knew exactly what his present was going to be as he did so, and in one swift motion, the article of clothing was on him. Mabel could barely contain her excitement as she said, "Okay...OPEN 'EM UP!"

Dipper opened his eyes and looked down. He had been correct about the present being a sweater, but a closer look at it yielded a hitched gasp and a pair of softened eyes. The sweater was a dark blue color with glow-in-the-dark neon spangles on it, an image of the Big Dipper constellation in the middle. A huge, warm, appreciative smile formed on his face as he took it in, Mabel rocking back and forth on her heels as she asked, "So...whatcha think? Now we can be sweater buddies!"

A massive, warm hug was Dipper's answer, an answer that filled Mabel with the same joy and gratitude he was experiencing. "This...Mabel, thank you so, so, so much. I love it."

"Don't mention it, broseph. After all, it's nice to be nice to the nice."

"I just feel bad that I don't have anything for you."

"You do, Dipper." Mabel winked at him and said, "I'm looking at it right now."

He sniffled and wiped his eyes, saying, "Darn it, Mabel, are you _trying_ to make me cry?"

"As long as they're tears of joy, then sure!" This time, it was she who initiated the hug, a massive, warm ball of love that showed no signs of ending. "I'm so glad that you're my brother, Dipper."

"I couldn't ask for a better sister, Mabel. I love you."

Unbeknownst to the twins, Stan stood just below the attic riser, watching the exchange with a warm smile on his face. "And I couldn't ask for a better great-nephew and -niece. I love you kids."


End file.
